Death Leads to a New Start
by MWolfL
Summary: Unknown to the arcade game characters, Litwak had actually saved his old Fix-It-Felix game. However the game is now dying for good, so Felix Sr and Raeburn decide to move back into the arcade through Litwak's laptop...not knowing that their company made a sequel to their game.
1. Final Shut Down

Remember how I said in Origins of the Parents that Mr. Litwak still had an old Fix-It-Felix console from his arcade? Well sadly even with Atara's skills the game couldn't last forever. The console started to wear out again over thirty years later. Luckily it wore out slowly...

"Raeburn get up!" A voice banged on the door of Raeburn's apartment door.

Wreck-It-Raeburn groaned and reluctantly got out of bed. One of the downsides of an apartment room, especially if you couldn't afford anything better, was that the bedroom was often close to the front door. However he recognized that voice: it was Fix-It-Felix, his game partner and only friend. Their game was so old that they had been the only characters to be programmed into the game. Kinda like how Pong only had the paddles and ball, nothing else.

Still a bit sleepy, Raeburn made his way to the front door and opened it.

"Darn it Felix you know I'm not a morning person." He grumbled.

"I know but this is an emergency: our game is wearing out again!" Felix said worriedly.

"What?" Now Raeburn was awake. "Aw man, we'd better get out of here!"

"Exactly...you should get dressed and pack first. I'm already ready so I can help you pack." Felix said a little more calmly, trying to not lose his head.

"Right, you start packing as I get dressed. I'll help you finish later...oh, we should get our code boxes too." Raeburn remembered as he headed back to his bedroom.

"Oh yeah...good thing Surge Protector taught us back when our game wore out for the first time." Felix nodded as he followed Raeburn. "Luckily Atara was able to temporarily fix things..."

Felix then slipped into the bathroom to grab the stuff in there as Raeburn quickly got dressed. Raeburn then started packing his clothes as Felix brought in more important supplies and a few more carrying cases. As they did so they saw the lights dim now and then, and Raeburn realized that was what tipped Felix off earlier.

Once they were done, they ran for the code room. Luckily it wasn't too far away, in fact it was in that very same building. Both Felix and Raeburn lived in that apartment, making it the best location for the Code Room.

Raeburn held on to the rope that was tied around Felix, and Felix safely removed his and Raeburn's code boxes. Then after Raeburn pulled Felix back in their code boxes disappeared inside them. The two friends then ran for the exit and took the train into the power lines inside the wall. They made it out in time, Mr. Litwak had woken up not too long ago and had seen the game flicker.

"Oh no...looks like this is it for Fix-It-Felix." Mr. Litwak said sadly; then he became worried. "I hope Felix and Raeburn were able to make it out okay. Either way I won't unplug it until the game shuts down for good."

Back in the power lines, Felix and Raeburn were finally able to rest.

"Now what?" Raeburn asked. "We can't stay here forever."

"No...hey, how about we sneak into Mr. Litwak's laptop?" Felix suggested.

"That's a good idea, he often takes it into his arcade so we'll get a ride back to Game Central Station." Raeburn nodded. "We won't be alone that way."

"Yeah...I wonder if our old friends are still there? PacMan and the rest?" Felix said nostalgically.

"I'd be surprised if they were...then again a few might, Mr. Litwak does have a soft spot for us old games." Raeburn shrugged.

"Yeah...anyway we'd better get to the laptop now before he leaves." Felix said.

"Right."

They ran through the power lines until they found the laptop. They then went inside and waited in the hard-drive where they wouldn't be seen. They didn't know Mr. Litwak knew about them being alive because he never revealed it to them. Mr. Litwak figured that they were friends with some of the old games and he didn't want to tell them about some of them...especially TurboTime.

Now as for the game character's perspective of the laptop...well since computers are more complex than arcade consoles it would be hard to describe everything. However here are the basics: the screen itself was a wall to them, and the files we see were just buttons on that wall. Behind the wall was a file cabinet, which was connected to the wall through a tube. Clicking on a file button twice would send a signal to the file cabinet, which would then shoot the selected file onto the screen where it would form the list icon that we normally see. Clicking on one of the docs listed there would then send another signal to the file cabinet, which would send the selected doc to the wall. The size of the file cabinet depended on the computer's memory.

As for the internet, that was entirely separate and way more complex. But basically the internet-related icons on the dock were more buttons, and clicking on one would open that particular connection to the internet. Most of the internet was located back at the companies' computers, what we would get would be just the stuff we were allowed to see.

Anyway, as Mr. Litwak got ready for work the console finally died. He sadly approached it once he noticed.

"We've had many good years together old friend, and I will miss playing you." He said. "But don't worry, I'll never let you be destroyed. At least not while I'm alive."

He then unplugged the game...and left it like that. Since he was already ready for work he then grabbed his laptop and left.

Once he arrived at the arcade he greeted his games as he went into the back to set his laptop down. He plugged it in and turned it on before leaving to greet the first of his customers.

As soon as the interior of the laptop lit up Felix and Raeburn knew that they had arrived. They headed for the plug and left to enter the power lines inside the wall. They traveled down the wires until the finally found the main power line with the train that allowed game characters to visit other arcades. Not wanting to accidentally get hit by a train, Felix and Raeburn decided to wait until a train came by. These trains didn't run as often as the game trains, but luckily they could sense when someone was in the main power line. So after many minutes a train came by and stopped near Felix and Raeburn. They got on and let the train take them to Game Central Station. Once they arrived they hesitated...how much had changed since they were last there? They were kinda scared to enter the empty station and so decided to wait until the arcade closed.

Now there did used to be homeless game characters, but that changed after Ralph gave Q*Bert and his friends a home in his game. After that the safest games decided to give the other homeless characters homes out of view of the game screen. Hence why the Station was empty.


	2. Old Friends and New Surprises

Hours later the arcade closed, and game characters started to leave their games. Sonic was one of the first of course, same with a few of the oldest characters. Felix and Raeburn were stunned.

"Pong? PacMan?" Raeburn said. "They're still around?"

"Good, at least a few of our friends are here." Felix said with relief. "This'll make things easier. We'd best enter the station now."

"Right, maybe we can find a new home somewhere." Raeburn agreed.

They entered Game Central Station, and all the other game characters just stared at them. Most started whispering, but the oldest characters went over to Felix and Raeburn instead.

"Fix-It-Felix? Wreck-It-Raeburn?" Inky, one of the PacMan ghosts, said. "You guys are back?"

"Kinda, our game died for good but we managed to escape into Mr. Litwak's laptop long before it happened." Raeburn explained. "We're glad you guys are still here...but where's Clyde?"

"Clyde normally stays in our game to give bad-guys advice." Blinkie, another ghost, explained. "He started these Bad-Anon Meetings to help badguys cope with their situations years ago. About five years after you guys left the arcade actually...we thought you two were gone for good then."

"No, Atara was able to temporarily repair our game." Felix said. "We've been in Mr. Litwak's home this whole time."

"Really?" Pinky, the only female ghost, smiled. "What was it like?"

"Lot's of fun, Mr. Litwak and his family played us a few times." Raeburn smiled. "He kinda has a plain apartment when compared to the arcade, but it's not exactly shoddy or anything. It's just obvious that he puts most of his money into the arcade."

Felix then froze.

"What?" He ran around the ghosts.

The ghosts turned around too...

"Felix wait!" Inky called.

Too late, Felix was nearly out of earshot. Raeburn also saw what had caught Felix's interest.

"No way." He stared, running after Felix.

You see what they had seen was Felix Jr, who was on his way to meet his wife Tamora. Luann was going to be spending a bit of time with Reneult and Candiel while Felix and Tamora went on a double-date with Ralph and Vanellope. In fact Luann was already in Sugar Rush.

Felix Jr and Felix Sr nearly bumped into each other.

"Oh excuse me-" Felix Jr at first apologized politely only to freeze upon seeing who he almost bumped into.

Felix Jr and Felix Sr both stared at each other, but Felix Jr was really the one who was shocked. His mouth and eyes were wide open while Felix Sr's were only slightly open, relatively speaking. Felix Jr's eyes then rolled upward and he fainted. Felix Sr was concerned for Felix Jr, but was too shocked about his existence in general to act on it.

"Another Felix?" Raeburn said with confusion.

"I didn't know TobiKomi made a sequel..." Felix Sr was stunned.

Felix Sr knew Felix Jr wasn't another version of him because Felix Sr had dark brown hair and Felix Jr had golden brown hair. Plus Felix Jr wore mostly blue while Felix Sr wore green. Raeburn wore a typical yellow demolition outfit, complete with hard hat and tan boots.

"Felix!" Someone gasped from behind Felix Sr and Raeburn.

Startled, they turned around and saw a woman with short blonde hair and armor run over to them. Obviously Tamora, Felix Jr's wife, though Felix Sr and Raeburn didn't know that yet.

Tamora went over to Felix Jr's side and checked his heart. It was still beating much to her relief. She then noticed Felix Sr and Raeburn and looked shocked upon seeing them.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Fix-It-Felix, and this is my friend Wreck-It-Raeburn." Felix Sr said. "We're from the game Fix-It-Felix, which had been in Mr. Litwak's house, but it died earlier today. We escaped in time and traveled here through Mr. Litwak's laptop. Who are you?"

"Sergeant Calhoun, from Hero's Duty-" Tamora froze when the names of the two familiar-looking guys fully hit her. "You must be Felix Sr."

"Sr?" Felix Sr said with confusion.

"Yes, you see this is Fix-It-Felix Jr from the game of the same name." Tamora explained. "Your son. And you must be Ralph's father...you kinda look like him and his full name is Wreck-It-Ralph. Plus he once said his father's name was Raeburn..."

"He's my son?" Felix Sr was stunned.

"I have a son?" Raeburn was probably more stunned.

"Apparently...come with me, I'd best get Felix Jr back into his game so that he can recover." Tamora got up, picking Felix Jr up and carrying him back towards his game.

Felix Sr and Raeburn followed, and as they entered the game they indeed saw that the name of it was Fix-It-Felix Jr. They then got onto the train - kinda tricky for Raeburn but he managed it - and headed further into the game. During the trip Felix Sr and Raeburn were still trying to get used to the information that they apparently had sons despite their not having met anyone in their old game. Of course this was because they had been the only ones in their old game, but that just made it more confusing. They couldn't help but wonder how they came to have sons, after all in order to have kids there has to be a mom...so who did they fall in love with? What were their wives like?

Tamora was wondering something too: when Felix Jr was shocked upon first finding out that he was going to be a father he 'died' from the shock. So why hadn't he died from shock again? Eventually Tamora decided that Felix Jr had just fainted before the shock could entirely affect him.

After they stopped at the station Tamora got out still carrying Felix Jr. Felix Sr and Raeburn got out too.

"Wait here, I want to talk to the citizens here before they see you." Tamora said.

Felix Sr and Raeburn nodded. They watched Tamora disappear behind a row of small apartments.

Tamora headed for the main building, where she saw Gene and Mary talking outside.

"Felix!" Mary gasped, having just noticed them.

She, Gene, and a few other Nicelanders that had been in earshot, went over to Tamora and Felix Jr. Ralph, who had just left his house due to having been taking a shower, saw the commotion and went over too.

"Is he okay?" Gene asked.

"He's fine, he just fainted back in Game Central Station." Tamora explained.

"Fainted from what?" Ralph asked.

"Well..." Truthfully that was another thing that Tamora had been wondering: why did Felix Jr faint upon seeing Felix Sr? "I'm not entirely sure but..." She then sighed. "What do any of you know about Felix Sr?"

"Felix's father?" Roy, one of the Nicelanders, said. "Well, we do know that Felix and his father were extremely close...and that Felix Sr died from cancer back when Felix was a teenager. He still hasn't gotten over it."

"That explains it..." Tamora said almost to herself before turning back to the Nicelanders. "Ralph told me about his father Raeburn but when I asked about Felix's father Ralph just said that it wasn't his place to tell and that Felix would tell me when he was ready. Felix never did which always confused me before...but now I know why."

"Yeah, since dad had died because of a demolition accident I was able to get over his death easier." Ralph nodded. "After all he had warned me ahead of time that demolition was a dangerous job. Felix on the other hand...when his dad got cancer it was really sudden. And for a moment it looked as if he was going to pull through..."

"But he didn't." Tamora said sympathetically.

"It nearly broke Felix's heart." Mary added sadly.

"But...what does this have to do with Felix fainting?" Gene asked.

"Because...did any of you know that there was an original Fix-It-Felix?" Tamora asked.

"Not officially, but we assumed so." Don said. "After all this game was called Fix-It-Felix Jr for a reason."

"Well, apparently Mr. Litwak owned one of those games back home and it just died earlier today." Tamora explained. "But...Felix Sr and Raeburn were able to escape in time and..."

Ralph and the Nicelanders looked shocked.

"They're here?" Ralph said.

"Yes, they traveled here through Mr. Litwak's laptop." Tamora nodded. "They're waiting back at the train station."

"Excuse me." Ralph left, actually looking happy.


	3. Meeting the Family

Ralph hurried passed East Niceland until he saw the train station. There he saw a guy who indeed look like Felix Sr, only younger...and his dad. Wreck-It-Raeburn. They both were standing near the station looking awkward. Ralph slowed down but still hurried over.

"Dad?" He said.

Raeburn and Felix Sr looked at Ralph and also looked surprised. Ralph had the same physique, eyes, and gap-toothed smile as Raeburn.

"You...you're my son?" Raeburn didn't know what to do or say.

"Yeah...I guess your future family hadn't been programmed into your game huh?" Ralph guessed.

"No...we didn't even know that there was a sequel to our game. Plus we were the only characters in our game." Felix Sr shrugged. "This...this is quite a shock to us."

"I know...this will take some getting used to..." Ralph admitted but was still smiling; he then turned to Raeburn. "But either way I...I'm glad to have you back dad. Even...if you're from back before you met mom..."

"Have me back?" Raeburn was surprised. "What...what happened to...?"

"The you from this game?" Ralph finished. "Backstory character, he died in a demolition accident a few months before the game timeline started. I was hurt over his death...but he had warned me of the dangers and risks of demolition so I was able to recover quickly."

"Oh..." Raeburn said awkwardly.

"Wait...how come you live here now? What happened to the city?" Felix Sr asked.

"Well, after dad died mom and I decided to move out into the country, near some woods." Ralph explained. "We wanted to be away from the dangers, plus I...I had a very poor social life. I didn't have any friends besides Felix Jr because of my strength and quick temper - that I got from mom - so mom and I hoped that starting a new life somewhere else would get me more friends. Kinda worked...the animals around here, especially the ducks, could tell that I was very kind deep down and so befriended me. Ended up loving the woods far more than the city so I decided to really become part of the woods. I gave up wearing shoes and even started living underground, though that mostly because I didn't want to wreck the woods with any construction."

"What about...my son?" Felix Sr said awkwardly.

"He and his mom moved here too, mostly because he really missed me." Ralph explained. "I was kinda like his big brother...still am actually."

"So...uh...why did he faint when he saw me?"

"Er..." Ralph hung his head. "You see when he was a teenager...in his backstory...you..." Ralph winced. "You died from cancer."

Felix Sr paled and Raeburn dropped his mouth open.

"What?" Felix Sr obviously was upset.

"Yeah...Felix...your son...was devastated...almost heartbroken even." Ralph sighed. "It was another reason why he wanted to move here...since I had just lost dad recently we ended up bonding further over that and I became a great source of comfort for him. It helped him a lot...he even started going back to being the cheerful guy I knew growing up. However he...obviously still hasn't entirely recovered. Seeing you was kinda like seeing a ghost to him. And I don't mean one of PacMan's either."

They then heard sounds coming from East Niceland, and when they looked towards the sounds they saw Tamora and Felix Jr walking towards them with the Nicelanders comforting Felix Jr. They then stopped upon seeing Felix Sr and Raeburn. Felix Jr looked shocked again, but this time he didn't faint. Instead tears formed in his eyes.

"Hey...son..." Felix Sr said awkwardly. "Found out about...backstory me...I'm really sorry."

"He asked why you fainted and I figured that it was best he knew as soon as possible." Ralph added.

"It's okay Ralph...saves me the trouble..." Felix Jr obviously was trying not to cry. "I haven't even really been able to talk about...since..."

"Hey, it's okay." Ralph went over and hugged Felix Jr. "Listen, how about you go tell your mom so she doesn't get the same shock you did?"

"Good idea..." Felix Jr nodded. "Excuse me."

He ran off towards the town, where his mom Kimberly and Ralph's mom Brenda lived.

"So, uh, you want to meet my mom?" Ralph then turned to Raeburn.

"I don't know..." Raeburn hesitated. "How do you think she'd take it?"

"I think after I explain things she'd take it pretty well." Ralph shrugged. "She might feel awkward around you for a while but she won't faint or anything like that."

"Well...okay." Raeburn gave in, deciding it would be best to get the worst of it over with.

Ralph and Raeburn left.

"So, I was wondering...how do you know...er, my son?" Felix Sr asked Tamora; obviously he was still having a hard time getting used to the term 'son'.

"I'm his wife." Tamora said matter-of-factly.

Felix Sr looked shocked. Tamora frowned a little but recovered.

"Don't tell me: women normally don't join the army in your time era?" She guessed.

"Not...really. They certainly don't lead an army." Felix Sr admitted.

"Ah well." Tamora shrugged. "Can't stay in the past forever."

"No...I guess not." Felix Sr said. "So...what's your game like?"

Tamora explained. By the time she finished Felix Sr was even more shocked about the fact that his son fell in love with her, but he decided not to say anything about it.

"Uh, how did you two meet?" He asked.

"That I'll explain when Ralph gets back." Tamora said. "It's a complicated story and would be best told at once in a group so that we can get all point-of-views in it."

"Right."

Meanwhile, Felix Jr made it to his mom's house. He knocked on the door and Kimberly opened it.

"Hello son, I-" Kimberly saw how upset Felix Jr looked and let him inside. "What's wrong?"

Felix Jr explained. Kimberly put a hand to her mouth.

"He's back..." She said with shock, sitting down on her couch.

"Yeah...I should be happy but..." Felix Jr joined her and started to sob. "But what if this one gets cancer and dies on us again? I just...I couldn't handle going through all that pain..."

"Me either." Kimberly admitted, close to tears herself.

They both ended up crying for a long time.

Not too much later Ralph and Raeburn made it to Brenda's house.

"So, since you and Felix Sr lost your game how about the two of you move into this one?" Ralph suggested before knocking on the door. "I'm sure Felix Jr wouldn't mind building a house or two for you guys."

"That reminds me...where is your home?" Raeburn asked.

"Well...the setup of this game is that my home, my tree stump, had been bulldozed to make way for that tall apartment building past the row of other buildings." Ralph explained. "I then start wrecking the building out of anger, and Felix Jr starts fixing it. Basically I'm, uh, the badguy in this game and he's the hero. Anyway after my tree stump had been bulldozed I made myself a new home, a house actually. Decided it was safer than living underground again."

"So...wait isn't a tree stump above ground?" Raeburn was confused.

"Yeah, see I use the tree stump for a bed and the underground part is used for shelter from the rain." Ralph explained. "Felix Jr also hadn't known about me living underground, he just thought that I was avenging my animal friends at first and was going about it the wrong way."

"Oh."

Ralph then knocked on the door.

"Is that you Ralph?" Brenda asked.

"Yeah." Ralph opened the door, since Brenda sometimes left it unlocked, and walked inside. "I need to tell you something."

"What is it?" Brenda left the kitchen and entered the living room.

Ralph explained. Brenda was shocked but less shocked than Kimberly had been.

"I know he's not the Raeburn you married and lived with for years, but in a way he's still my dad." Ralph finished.

"Well he may not be the same Raeburn we knew, but either way it would be nice to see him again." Brenda said. "If nothing else then he can become like a big brother to us or something."

"That's true." Ralph shrugged. "So can I let him in?"

"Go ahead."

Ralph gestured for Raeburn to come inside. Raeburn did and he and Brenda looked at each other awkwardly. Raeburn then remembered that he had been wondering something ever since he first heard that he had a son.

"So I was wondering...uh...how did you and my future self meet?" Raeburn asked.

"Oh...well I think it was a few years after the timeline your game is supposed to have." Brenda said. "You and Felix Sr had become friendly rivals by that point, and had decided to have a snack in the bakery Kimberly - Felix Jr's mom - and I owned. You two were compromising over this one building at the time, and spent some time at the table discussing it. I got a little annoyed by how much time the two of you were taking up and so interrupted you to ask how much longer you needed. Felix Sr apologized for taking so much time, and you explained what the two of you had been discussing and actually asked for my input. I was impressed that you were able to find the input of a woman worthwhile unlike some men, and calmed down. Kimberly and I then started talking to the two of you and we ended up bonding. Our bakery then became yours and Felix Sr's main hangout. About a couple years later we married, Felix Sr married Kimberly...I think you can guess the rest." Brenda then gestured to Ralph.

"Right." Raeburn nodded before adding almost to himself: "Huh, that sounds like me. I know that everyone's input can be important..."

"So how is Felix Jr taking Felix Sr's arrival?" Brenda asked Ralph.

"Not good. I don't think Kimberly is taking it well either, Felix Jr has probably told her by now." Ralph sighed.

"Poor guy." Raeburn sighed. "I hope he can recover soon."

"Same here, he deserves his dad back." Ralph nodded.

"So, since you and Felix Sr are part of the game in a way I'm guessing the two of you are going to move in here?" Brenda said to Raeburn.

"Ralph did ask me earlier. I think we will move in, especially since I want to get to know Ralph more and I'm sure Felix Sr wants to get to know Felix Jr more." Raeburn nodded. "I mean even though we hadn't met you or Kimberly in our game Ralph and Felix Jr are still our sons in a way. And it would be nice to actually have a family, not even my parents and Felix Sr's parents existed in our game."

"Yeesh, I'm glad the companies were able to improve the technology for future consoles." Ralph winced.

"Same here, our game did get pretty lonely at times." Raeburn nodded.

"Well I wouldn't mind you two moving in...I don't think Felix Jr and Kimberly would take it well though." Brenda pointed out.

"I'll talk to Felix Jr about it and you talk to Kimberly about it." Ralph shrugged. "First I think we'd best head back, Felix Sr might be getting uncomfortable with Tamora nearby."

"Who...oh you mean Sergeant Calhoun?" Raeburn guessed. "Yeah Felix Sr was never comfortable around tough women, he prefers gentle women."

"Heh, the backstory Felix Sr from this game got used to me though." Brenda chuckled as she, Ralph, and Raeburn started to leave.

"Ralph did say he inherited your temper." Raeburn remembered.

"Oh yeah, I've learned to calm down somewhat but you definitely don't want to get mom angry." Ralph chuckled.

They headed back to the train station and sure enough found Felix Sr looking uncomfortable.

"Felix Jr isn't back yet?" Ralph said.

"I think he's still talking to his mom." Tamora explained.

"So...I found out...my son...married Sergeant Calhoun." Felix Sr said to Raeburn.

"You can call me Tamora if that makes things easier." Tamora added.

"Really? I guess he doesn't entirely take after his dad then." Raeburn was surprised.

"Yeah I guessed Felix Sr here isn't comfortable around army women."

"Actually he isn't comfortable around tough women in general." Brenda explained. "I was the only one the backstory version ever got used to."

"Ah."

"What about you son?" Raeburn asked Ralph. "Any luck with women?"

"Not for decades, including the first thirty years this game spent in the arcade. However around four years ago I met the ruler of the Sugar Rush game." Ralph smiled. "We then married about two years ago and had a son."

"Ruler? You mean a princess?" Felix Sr was surprised.

"Well kinda..."

"You hear that?" Raeburn said both proud and surprised. "My son won the heart of a princess!"

"Yeah they know dad...and for the record she prefers to be called 'president'." Ralph muttered embarrassedly.

"So? Doesn't change the fact that she's royalty. Way to go big guy!" Raeburn slapped Ralph on the back proudly.

"Yeah, you're my dad all right." Ralph shook his head as he rubbed his back slightly.

Brenda smirked, remembering when her Raeburn used to do that to Ralph. Even though she wasn't sure about thinking of this Raeburn as her husband or even boyfriend she was glad that Ralph was able to get his dad back in a way.

Felix Jr and Kimberly then showed up.

"Mom wanted to see if it was true." Felix Jr explained.

Felix Sr then stood up and turned around.

"So...you're who my future self marries?" He said to Kimberly awkwardly.

Kimberly nodded.

"Well...don't worry about me." Felix Sr smiled. "Even though I am glad to have a family I understand that you and our- uh, your son are still hurting from the death of my backstory version. Take as long as you need to get used to this."

"Thank you..." Kimberly said shyly.

Felix Sr couldn't help but continue smiling despite feeling bad for her and Felix Jr. He then went to Felix Jr.

"So...I found out you married Tamora here." He said.

"Yeah...I guess you're caught off-guard by that huh?" Felix Jr said awkwardly.

Felix Sr nodded.

"Well Tammy may seem tough at first but deep down she's a very kind and caring woman." Felix Jr said.

"Oh don't worry, I don't disapprove or anything. I mean if she makes you happy then thats all that matters." Felix Sr said.

Felix Jr just looked away while nodding.

"So." Raeburn spoke up, sensing the awkwardness and wanting to get rid of it. "Can I meet my daughter-in-law and grandson now?"

"Sure thing." Ralph smiled. "Follow me."

He, Raeburn, Brenda, Felix Sr, Tamora, Kimberly, and Felix Jr went to Sugar Rush. Along the way Ralph quietly spoke to Felix Jr about letting Raeburn and Felix Sr move in.

"I dunno Ralph...I mean..." Felix Jr hesitated.

"I know you're still hurting from your other dad's death, but you shouldn't let it control your life." Ralph said.

"Well...okay. But only because you obviously want your dad back." Felix Jr gave in.

"Thanks brother." Ralph smiled.

Felix Jr smiled back weakly.


	4. A Sweet Family Reunion

They continued on into Sugar Rush...and Felix Sr and Raeburn dropped their mouths open upon seeing the candy landscape.

"Oh my land..." Felix Sr gaped.

Felix Jr did a double-take. Even though he had picked up that expression (and a few others) from his dad seeing this other version of his dad use them was a bit unnerving.

"Wow!" Raeburn smiled. "Your wife rules this place?"

"Yeah." Ralph chuckled. "Well it is called 'Sugar' Rush for a reason."

"I'll say." Raeburn grinned.

They all headed towards the start of the racing track with Ralph leading the way. He then stopped many feet away.

"Wait here, I'm going to let Vanellope and the others know about you and Felix Sr first." He said to Raeburn.

Raeburn and Felix Sr nodded, and Ralph left.

"There you are Stinkbrain, what kept you?" Vanellope asked, both annoyed and glad to see him.

"Sorry, an unexpected situation happened." Ralph said.

"What?" Taffyta asked.

"Well...I'm sure you've probably figured by now that Felix's and my game is a sequel to a previous game right?"

"Sure." Rancis shrugged.

"It is obvious." Matlow nodded.

"Well, it turns out Mr. Litwak owned the previous game, Fix-It-Felix, and the console died early this morning." Ralph explained. "However the two main and only characters in the game managed to escape and travel here through Litwak's computer. Meaning...my dad and Felix's dad are here."

All the Racers, except for Reneult, dropped their mouths open. Ralph then looked around.

"Reneult already left with Luann and Candiel I take it?" He guessed.

"Yeah, they're playing inside the castle..." Vanellope nodded. "Wait just a moment, you mean to tell me that you and Felix have both your dads back?"

"Kinda..."

"Then what are we standing around here for?" Vanellope beamed. "Come on let's go meet them!"

She ran off in the direction Ralph came from. The other Racers smirked and then ran after her. Ralph chuckled and ran after them.

Vanellope continued running until she saw Felix Jr, Tamora, Brenda, Kimberly, and two familiar yet unknown guys. She then slowed down and brisk-walked over to them.

"Hello Vanellope, good to see you again." Brenda smiled.

"Always good to see you too." Vanellope grinned; she then turned to the unknown guy who looked most like Ralph. "You must be Raeburn."

"That's me...are you Ralph's wife?" Raeburn guessed.

"Yup, President Vanellope Von Schweetz." Vanellope grinned.

"Wait you didn't...oh yeah the programmers never really gave us last names." Felix Sr remembered. "Just titles."

"Right, so Ralph took mine when we were married." Vanellope nodded.

The other Racers and Ralph then showed up. Vanellope turned around, smiled, and then turned back to Raeburn.

"These are the other playable characters." Vanellope smiled. "We're called Racers because our game is a racing game. This here is Taffyta, my Vice President, and her husband Rancis."

She introduced the rest of the Racers, leaving out the last names. Some of the last names were a bit tricky to remember so she decided that Raeburn and Felix Sr could start learning them after they get settled in and get better acquainted with everyone.

"Well, I'm really glad to meet my daughter-in-law but where's my grandson?" Raeburn smiled.

"He's playing with his other grandpa, my dad, and his cousin." Vanellope explained.

"Cousin?" Felix Sr was surprised since Vanellope hadn't mentioned any siblings.

"Yeah, Felix Jr and Tamora's daughter." Ralph explained.

Felix Sr, once again, was caught off-guard.

"Come on, they're back in the castle." Vanellope then smiled. "Do the rest of you Racers want to come?"

"No thanks, some of us have our own dates to finally begin." Taffyta gave Ralph a playful-annoyed look.

"Well not all of you had to wait with Vanellope..." Ralph muttered defensively.

"I know and it's okay, I was just teasing." Taffyta chuckled.

Ralph just smirked back.

Vanellope led Tamora and the Fix-It-Felix characters to the castle as the other Racers left to do their own thing.

"What was that about?" Raeburn asked.

"Oh Felix Jr, Tamora, Vanellope and I had originally planned to go on a double-date before you two showed up." Ralph explained. "But it's okay, I'm glad you both came."

"Yeah and we can have double-dates anytime." Vanellope added. "Getting lost fathers back is way more special."

They entered the castle and followed Vanellope outside where they saw Candiel, Reneult, and Luann taking turns playing badminton. Luann saw them first and did a double-take.

"Jiminy jaminy, what are you four doing here?" She went over to her parents and aunt and uncle. "You guys should be on a double-date."

Felix Sr smiled in spite of himself upon hearing his granddaughter use one of the family phrases.

"Something unexpected came up." Tamora explained. "It turns out both you and Reneult got your grandfathers back."

"Wha-" Luann then saw Felix Sr and dropped her mouth open. "Felix Sr? Dad told me you were just a backstory character."

"No way I have two grandpas now!" Reneult beamed as he went over.

Candiel went over too.

"So I finally get to meet you." He smiled to Raeburn. "Ralph told me a lot about you, and may I say you have a wonderful son. Sugar Rush couldn't get a better king...or First Man as he and Vanellope prefer."

"Oh I'm not as good as...well okay since I'm the first First Man I'll agree to that." Ralph shrugged. "But you're still the best king Sugar Rush ever had."

"Fair enough." Candiel chuckled.

"So how did you manage to bring them into existence?" Luann asked.

"Oh...they aren't from our game." Felix Jr spoke up. "They're...from the original game ours was a sequel to. Mr. Litwak owned it and their console died this morning so they came here through his laptop."

"Ah I see." Luann smiled. "Well even if you aren't their game's version of my grandpa I'm still very glad to finally meet you."

"It's great meeting my dad's dad too." Reneult smiled. "I mean mom's dad is a great grandpa but you can't beat having two of them."

Felix Sr started to feel more comfortable, especially since he liked Luann already.

"It is great to have a family again...including a granddaughter." He said. "Especially since I didn't expect even to have a son let alone a granddaughter. So, are you a fixer too?"

"Kinda." Luann smiled. "Actually I work in mom's game. Not as a fighter though, instead I fix broken weapons and invent new ones."

"Ah..." Felix Sr was a bit uncomfortable again but let it go.

"What about you kiddo?" Raeburn asked Reneult.

"Racer." Reneult smiled. "I inherited dad's wrecking powers - yours too apparently - and I use it to get rid of obstacles."

"Best of both." Raeburn grinned. "I like him already son, he's a real chip off the ol' block."

"Or as I like to say: chip off the ol' chocolate cookie." Candiel grinned.

Raeburn laughed and Felix Sr chuckled.

"Well, glad to know my son has a good father-in-law." Raeburn grinned before wincing: "You know how the whole in-law thing sometimes goes..."

"Yeah, well there's none of that in this group." Vanellope smiled. "So, from what Ralph told me you work in demolitions...I can see it too, I mean your boots and such. Hey Stinkbrain, you should've taken some grooming tips from your dad."

"Oh very funny Princess Burp-Breath." Ralph retorted sarcastically. "Hey who's the one with the messy hair huh?"

"That's President Burp-Breath to you, and this is not a mess this is a fashion statement." Vanellope said, pretending to be offended.

"It's a statement all right, but I wouldn't call it a fashion one." Ralph countered.

"Aw what do you know about fashion?" Vanellope scoffed.

"I know enough to know that...no matter how you dress you'll always be beautiful to me." Ralph then smiled.

Vanellope giggled and went closer to him.

"You flatterer." She flirted before kissing him.

"Are they always like this?" Felix Sr asked.

"You have no idea." Reneult smirked.

"They've been like this ever since they ended up together." Tamora nodded.

"Heh, my son picked a good one." Raeburn smiled proudly. "I always liked women with spirit. Good to know my son inherited my good taste."

"Very good taste." Vanellope grinned, having just ended the kiss.

"That I can definitely agree on." Ralph nodded.

"So, I was wondering how you two met." Raeburn then asked.

"Ah...that's a very long story." Vanellope smiled.

"Yeah we'd best head inside and sit down in the tea room." Candiel nodded. "I'll ask Sour Bill to get us some refreshments."


	5. Brenda Finds Out the Truth

After they were settled in the tea room, which was kinda like our version of a living room except more royal looking, Ralph, Felix Jr, Tamora, and Vanellope took turns telling the story. Felix Jr started off with what happened to TurboTime, which made Raeburn and Felix Sr very upset. They had been friends with Motor and Careen and were sad that they were gone. However they didn't vocalize their sadness so they didn't find out - yet - that Motor and Careen were actually still alive. Brenda also was shocked during the whole story...see Ralph had temporarily forgotten about Brenda's temper so the whole thing with the Nicelanders...yeah.

Raeburn and Felix Sr again became shocked when they found out about Turbo having taken over Sugar Rush...especially how he had gone about it. They had known about Turbo being a vain jerk, but would have never guessed that he would stoop as low as to separate a parent and child or even try to kill a child in general.

The story continued into how Vanellope realized her feelings for Ralph and took the risk of entering another game to become an adult. Raeburn was very impressed with Vanellope's love and devotion towards Ralph and became even more proud of who his son ended up with.

After the story was over...

"So this whole time the Nicelanders mistreated you and you never told me?" Brenda frowned to Ralph.

"Oh bricks..." Ralph muttered. "Yeah...well..."

"How could they treat my baby boy that way?" Brenda then said angrily. "How could they? Who do they think they are? Ralph was never a bad guy he was just someone who had already lost too much!"

She then ran out of the tea room.

"Oh man, we gotta stop her before she goes overboard!" Ralph quickly got up and ran after his mom.

Everyone else did too. They finally somewhat caught up with Brenda - who was pretty fast - by the time she was nearing Game Central Station.

"Mom, it's all in the past!" Ralph called after her. "It's no big de-"

"Don't you back talk your mother!" Brenda interrupted, starting to lose it. "Oh I'm so mad that...I'M GONNA BREAK IT!"

"Oh Litwak..." Ralph muttered with embarrassment...especially since they were in Game Central Station at the time.

Sure enough everyone who was there stared at Brenda and those who were running after her.

"Well now we know where Ralph got his catchphrase from..." Vanellope joked weakly, not having seen Brenda's temper before.

By this point Brenda neared the apartment and started breaking through the front door.

"He wasn't kidding about having gotten his temper from her either." Raeburn added.

Brenda made it through the door.

"What a gal!" Raeburn smiled, impressed.

"I can fix it!" Felix Sr and Felix Jr held up their hammers...only to double-take towards each other.

" _Aw, they're bonding._ " Kimberly thought automatically.

She then panicked herself with that thought. She can't get used to thinking of this Felix Sr as one of the family, what if he died on them again?

Raeburn and Ralph continued running after Brenda and everyone else slowed down. They decided to let Ralph handle things since he knew his mom best, plus Raeburn was another strong character so he'd be able to help Ralph with little trouble.

Brenda continued on until she neared Gene's penthouse. Luckily, the angry sounds she made on the way there tipped off Gene that someone was really angry at him. He quickly hid under his bar.

"Where are you Gene?" Brenda snapped after crashing through the doors.

Gene then realized that Brenda must've found out about how he treated Ralph during the first thirty years of their game life. Needless to say Gene was even more scared now.

"Come on out! I'll teach you to mistreat my son!" Brenda demanded.

"Mom easy!" Ralph caught up with her. "Come on, all that happened years ago, Gene and the other Nicelanders already learned their mistake!"

"Even so, no one treats my son that way and gets away with it!" Brenda glared.

"Brenda, come on, don't you remember that the Nicelanders had limited programming?" Raeburn said gently, having arrived. "Ralph told me that himself not too long ago. Anyway it's obvious that it was hard for them to learn anything that was outside their code, and their code told them to fear Ralph."

"Yeah, besides Gene hated me because I always toss him out of the building at the start of every game." Ralph added. "Can't blame him for that even though it's part of the gameplay."

Brenda started to calm down, but still frowned angrily.

"Hey, relax." Raeburn smiled gently. "Remember they treat him a lot nicer now? And he didn't even have to scare them into it. I think you beating up Gene might do more harm than good...it might even make the Nicelanders scared of you and I doubt Ralph would want that."

"Certainly not." Ralph agreed.

Brenda let out an exasperated but defeated breath.

"Okay...fine." She gave in. "I'll leave them alone."

Raeburn automatically went over to her and hugged her. Brenda was caught off-guard but nearly melted in his arms. She had almost forgotten what his hugs felt like-

" _WHOA! Hold it he is not my husband he's another version of him._ " Brenda thought, snapping herself out of her contented state.

"Gene?" Ralph said. "It's okay, you can come out now."

Gene shakily and cautiously left his hiding place.

"Thank you Ralph...you too Raeburn." Gene wiped his forehead.

"Hey no problem." Ralph smiled.

Everyone else then arrived and relaxed upon realizing that Ralph and Raeburn managed to calm Brenda down.

"So...how did she find out about...?" Gene asked awkwardly.

"Sorry about that, we were explaining the whole Turbo incident to dad and Felix Sr." Vanellope said.

Ralph smiled, glad Vanellope had already accepted Raeburn into the family.

"Oh. It's okay, I mean I would've regenerated anyway..." Gene shrugged.

"Come on." Raeburn said to Brenda. "It's been a long day, I think we all could use some rest."

"Oh yeah, I'd better work on those houses for you and Felix Sr." Felix Jr remembered.

"Can...can I help son?" Felix Sr asked awkwardly.

By this point he had started thinking of Felix Jr as his son, but was still uncomfortable around him because of Felix Jr's backstory-dad.

Felix Jr winced mentally at hearing another version of his dad call him son, but smiled slightly and nodded. He and Felix Sr started to leave and fixed Gene's door on the way out.

Everyone else then left except for Ralph. Vanellope noticed and hesitated.

"You coming Stinkbrain?" She asked.

"In a moment, I want to make sure Gene will be all right." Ralph said.

Vanellope smiled understandingly and left.

"Oh I'll be fine Ralph, you go on ahead." Gene smiled.

"Really? Well if you're sure then okay." Ralph smiled back. "See you tomorrow."

"Right...oh and Ralph?"

Ralph stopped and looked back at Gene.

"Thank you...not only for stopping your mom but also for inheriting your dad's ability to calm down easily."

Ralph just smirked.

"Also...I'm glad for this chance to get to know them. Not just Felix Sr but your dad as well." Gene added.

"Thanks Gene." Ralph smiled. "Well, I'd better get going. Good night."

"See you tomorrow."

Ralph left and caught up with his family and friends. He and Vanellope kissed each other goodbye, he, Candiel, and Reneult said their goodbyes, and Vanellope, Candiel, and Reneult left. Tamora was already gone, due to the long day Ralph and Tamora decided to sleep in their respective games so that they could sleep in a little.

Felix Jr and Felix Sr built two new homes around East Niceland. It was the closest thing to the city in that game so Felix Sr and Raeburn were both more comfortable there. Everyone who was left said their good nights and got ready for bed.


	6. Gaming Lessons

The next morning the arcade opened again. Raeburn and Felix Sr stayed out of sight of the game screen and watch their sons do their job.

"Wow, my son really inherited my wrecking skills." Raeburn grinned proudly.

"And my son really knows how to use my hammer." Felix Sr smiled proudly before looking confused. "But what's with the ducks?"

"Ralph told me that his closest animal friends are the ducks so they're obviously helping him." Raeburn said.

"Ah."

After the arcade closed Ralph went over to Raeburn and Felix Sr holding a cake.

"You two want a slice?" He smiled.

"Sure." Raeburn smiled.

"I wouldn't mind a piece." Felix Sr smiled.

The three of them started to eat the cake.

"This is really good." Felix Sr said after eating his piece.

"Yeah Mary makes the best cakes." Ralph smiled. "So dad, I'm going to Sugar Rush really soon want to join me?"

"Of course." Raeburn smiled. "I'd love to see more of the kingdom."

"Ay yi yi..." Ralph facepalmed, remembering that his backstory dad used to be a bit egotistical and boastful until Brenda humbled him (that's what Brenda told him anyway).

"Raeburn, the fact that it's a kingdom doesn't matter...especially since Vanellope prefers to call it a country." Brenda frowned, having shown up. "What matters that it's where Ralph proved that he deserves respect plus managed to find someone who can love him no matter what."

Raeburn winced.

"Yeah...you're right." He admitted. "Actually I'd like to see Vanellope, Reneult, and Candiel again more than I actually want to see the rest of the place."

Ralph smirked. It actually felt good to see that his mom and his other-version dad were already starting to compliment each other...just like his mom and backstory dad had back when they first met.

"I'm coming too, in the excitement last night I forgot to thank Vanellope for improving your life." Brenda added.

"No problem." Ralph smiled.

"Er...does this mean I'll have to visit Hero's Duty with my son?" Felix Sr said awkwardly.

"Don't worry," Felix Jr said, appearing after having put his medal and pie away. "I hardly visit that game anyway. Instead Tamora and Luann leave the game and meet me in Game Central Station. Er...well I'm sure Luann will want to get to know you more so if you want to join me..."

"Actually I was thinking of catching up with our old friends. Raeburn's and mine." Felix Sr said understandingly before looking sad. "Just wish we could've seen Motor and Careen one last time-"

"Oh, completely forgot." Ralph chuckled. "Motor and Careen are still alive."

"What?" Felix Sr and Raeburn looked at Ralph with shock.

"Yeah after Turbo invaded Roadblasters they left TurboTime out of fright - turned out to be a good idea - and hid in the main power lines along the wall." Ralph explained. "No one knew about that until last summer, our friend Perry noticed Careen and told us. When we investigated we found both Careen and Motor and convinced them to return to Game Central Station. They hadn't before because they were scared that the others would beat them up or something...turns out their fears weren't irrational either, but fortunately Felix Jr and I managed to convince everyone that they weren't like Turbo at all. Vanellope then let them move into Sugar Rush so that they could race after arcade hours."

"Really? Despite what Turbo did to her?" Felix Sr was surprised.

"It was hard for her, but their having been pretty much homeless appealed to her empathy. The fact that they had been homeless outside Game Central Station itself and not just their game was what really convinced her."

"Oh. Well in that case I'll come along with you and your parents." Felix Sr decided. "I'd like to see Motor and Careen again."

"Same here, after picking up the rest of the family how about we all go over to where Motor and Careen are living now?" Raeburn suggested.

"Eh, we'd best see whether the Roster Race has already taken place or not first." Ralph said. "They're not allowed to race until after the Roster Race is over with, Vanellope doesn't want to risk them getting on the Roster. If the Roster Race has already happened then we'd have to arrange things first, Motor and Careen spend most of their free time racing since they're making up for lost time."

"Okay." Raeburn agreed.

Kimberly then showed up, revealing that she wanted to go since Brenda was going. Kimberly and Brenda often spent most of their time hanging out so Kimberly wasn't really used to being alone. However there was a secret reason: she wanted to help Felix Sr accept Tamora and Luann into the family. Even though she had decided to not think of Felix Sr as her husband he was still Felix Jr's father in a way which made him part of the family.

They all headed into Game Central Station, waited for Tamora and Luann, and went into Sugar Rush. Luckily the Roster Race hadn't taken place yet, and even luckier Motor and Careen could be seen waiting excitedly in the stands.

So when Ralph, Felix Jr, and their families arrived at the stands they went over to Motor and Careen. Felix Sr and Raeburn went over first, and Motor and Careen were obviously shocked. Felix Sr and Raeburn explained how they came back and expressed relief that both Motor and Careen were still alive. The four of them then began chatting like old times, at least until the race officially started.

When it was over Raeburn couldn't be prouder: Vanellope and Reneult were both awesome Racers and even nearly got on the roster. Raeburn was a little suspicious of that actually...

Anyway, after all the Racers relaxed at the finish line the fans left the stands. Including Ralph and the others.

"Incredible racing as always you two." Ralph smiled proudly.

"Thanks Stinkbrain." Vanellope grinned.

"Yeah, thanks dad." Reneult smiled.

"That was amazing...though I'm surprised neither of you two made it onto the roster." Raeburn scratched his head.

"Oh yeah...sometimes we let ourselves not get on the roster on purpose so that the other Racers can have a turn." Vanellope smiled.

"Uh-huh, we race more for fun than anything else anyway." Reneult nodded.

"Ah." Raeburn smiled understandingly...and proudly.

"Hey Reneult!" Stormberry called as she left the stands. "Ready to head for the park?"

"Yeah just a sec!" Reneult called back before turning to his family. "If it's okay with Stormberry do you guys want to go? I think Stormberry would like to get to know my new grandpa anyway."

"I wouldn't mind a picnic in the park myself." Vanellope hugged Ralph's arm.

Ralph, Raeburn, and Brenda also agreed. Same with Luann and Candiel, but Felix Jr and Tamora wanted to take a walk on their own and Motor and Careen couldn't wait to start racing. This left Felix Sr and Kimberly, who both decided to go to the park as well. Felix Sr didn't want to go off on his own, not knowing the game very well, and Kimberly didn't want to be with Felix Sr on her own either. She was worried that being alone with him would cause her to forget that technically he isn't her husband.

Felix Sr also felt like protesting about Felix Jr going off on his own with Tamora, but didn't want to alienate Felix Jr any further. So he decided to not think about one of Tamora's weapons hurting his son and concentrate on those weapons protecting his son instead.

At the park Reneult, Luann, Stormberry, and Candiel played a girls-against-guys version of volleyball while the others ate and chat. All except for Felix Sr, who decided to watch his granddaughter for a while. Kimberly noticed and decided to muster up some courage so that she could talk to them.

"Hi..." She said awkwardly.

"Oh...hello." Felix Sr smiled politely. "Would you like to join me?"

"Uh...sure." Kimberly hesitated before sitting down next to him.

Felix Sr sighed.

"I know, it must be strange to see a younger version of your husband after he died years ago." He said understandingly.

"It is." Kimberly admitted. "And you're exactly like him too...I can't even decide whether that makes this stranger or not."

"Well, in my case I'm glad to finally have a family...whether or not I'm accepted into their life." Felix Sr said sadly.

"I-" Kimberly didn't know how to reassure him on that one so she decided to change the subject. "I noticed that you aren't comfortable around Tamora or Luann."

"No...I'm trying to be for our son's sake but tough violent women...who lead an army no less...what did he ever see in Tamora?"

"I wonder myself at first, until I realized: her tough violent nature was just her outer shell and had been caused by pain." Kimberly explained. "She had a previous love, but lost him to a Cy-Bug due to failing to have a perimeter check around the church."

"Church? Wait you mean..." Felix Sr widened his eyes. "The previous love was her first husband?"

"No, just first fiancé. They couldn't even finish the ceremony before the Cy-Bug crashed the party and ate him."

"Oh my land..." Felix Sr said with shock.

"Exactly, ever since then she's been extremely protective of everyone. She doesn't even have to be close to them either." Kimberly nodded. "This caused her to come across as cold-hearted and violent to most people, but Felix Jr was able to see who she was on the inside: a hurt person who was trying to save others from experiencing the same pain. Deep down she really is kind, caring, and puts others before herself. And that's what Felix Jr fell in love with."

"I see..." Felix Sr started to get it, and also started to realize that his son did have good taste in women after all. "But what about letting his daughter join her mom's game?"

"There was concern over that, same with Reneult." Kimberly admitted. "Because both their parents came from different games no one knew whether they'd be able to regenerate in their parents' respective games or not. But then Luann decided to help her mom's game as a background character, and ended up seeing the game's code. It turns out she was recognized as a game character, and so took the risk of entering the game officially. She did get eaten by a Cy-Bug, but regenerated once the game was done. Ever since then her parents had stopped worrying about her safety in either game. This is what also led to Reneult becoming a Racer, Vanellope didn't want to let him at first because she was scared of losing him. However after finding out that the game code did recognize him she was first to say that he needed a kart. So if Luann hadn't inherited her mom's bravery and boldness Reneult would still be a sad NPC."

Felix Sr thought about this for a while...and then smiled.

"You're right, just because they're both army women doesn't mean I should question them being related to our son." He said. "Our son actually does have good taste in women...and he has raised a wonderful daughter as well."

"That he has." Kimberly smiled.

Felix Sr leaned back a bit...and ended up putting his hand on Kimberly's. Kimberly felt her heart skip a beat as she started to blush. Her heart then started to beat faster...until Felix Sr finally noticed. He hadn't before because of his glove being in the way.

"Oh, I'm so sorry." He quickly removed his hand.

"It's...it's okay." Kimberly said awkwardly. "Really...I mean your glove was blocking your sense of touch..."

"Which was why I should've watched where I was putting my hand..." Felix Sr apologized.

"No, like I said it's okay." Kimberly shook her head.

Meanwhile, Ralph and Vanellope talking and being a married couple caused Raeburn and Brenda to forget that technically they weren't married at one point: Raeburn put his arm around Brenda. Ralph and Vanellope were both happy to see this, and so didn't point it out. Ralph you see knew that his other-version dad was exactly like his backstory dad - not counting the age detail - and so wanted other-version dad to end up with his mom. He really wanted his mom to be happy again, and also really wanted his dad back.

Much to Ralph and Vanellope's disappointment, Brenda eventually remembered that she and this Raeburn weren't married and instantly felt uncomfortable. She quickly left with the excuse that she wanted to watch the volleyball game for a moment. Raeburn watched her leave confusedly...until he realized the real reason why she left. He then blushed about his faux pas.

That evening they all started to head for their respective games/homes. Felix Sr however approached Tamora and Luann.

"Can I talk to you two for a moment?" Felix Sr asked, holding his hat to his chest.

"Sure." Tamora shrugged as Luann nodded.

They walked away slightly and Felix Sr sighed.

"I want to apologize...for the way I've been acting around you two I mean." He said. "Despite my always being uncomfortable around tough women, especially army women, I should've realized that my son wouldn't fall in love with one unless she was like him in certain ways. Like being kind and caring...not to mention putting others before yourself. And I also should've known that he would never let his daughter work in a dangerous game like Hero's Duty if there was a risk of her dying permanently. I'm sorry, you two are a part of the family and I should've accepted that sooner."

"It's okay grandpa." Luann smiled before getting down to hug him. "I'm just glad you're here and that you like us."

"Yeah, I don't blame you for being uncomfortable around us at first. Heck you're not the first to be uncomfortable around us." Tamora smiled. "Besides, at least you've accepted us in the family now."

"True...but I don't like you both. I love you both." Felix Sr corrected, returning Luann's hug. "You're my daughter-in-law and granddaughter so how can I not?"

"I love you too grandpa." Luann said.

"Heh, my love for Felix Jr is normally the only love I really admit out loud...but even so I can't deny that I love all of my family." Tamora smirked.

Felix Sr smiled back. He, Tamora, and Luann then said their goodbyes and headed to their homes.


	7. Dilemma of the Hearts

When Brenda and Kimberly headed towards the town in Fix-It-Felix Jr...

"You want to come over for some tea Brenda?" Kimberly asked.

Brenda looked at her and saw that she looked troubled. Brenda knew why too.

"I'd love a cup or two." Brenda agreed.

They went into Kimberly's house and Kimberly put the kettle on.

"Brenda, I have a problem." She said when she came back from the kitchen.

"I figured as much. Felix Sr right?" Brenda said.

"Yeah...don't tell me: Raeburn."

"Yup."

"What are we going to do?" Kimberly sighed as she sat down next to Brenda on the couch. "They're characters from a different game not our actual husbands. Yet..."

"They have the exact same personalities and mannerisms as our husbands." Brenda finished. "I don't know Kim, I feel that if I do date this Raeburn it'd be like betraying the one I married in my backstory."

"I feel the same way, but despite that feeling I can't stop loving this Felix Sr." Kimberly admitted.

"And I can't stop loving this Raeburn." Brenda agreed.

The tea was ready, so Kimberly went to get a couple cups of it. They continued talking as they drank their tea, but neither of them could figure out what to do.

A few days passed like this, with no one really catching on to Brenda and Kimberly's emotional dilemma. Well, actually one character started to catch on...

One evening Brenda was relaxing with a book when she heard a knock on the door. Once she opened it she saw Tamora standing there.

"Well hello Tamora." Brenda smiled. "What brings you here?"

"I'd like to talk to you and Kimberly for a moment." Tamora said. "I...have a feeling that something's been troubling you both."

"Ah...one sec."

Brenda went to her phone and called Kimberly. Kimberly showed up a couple minutes later. She and Tamora then went inside and the three of them sat down.

"So, you've caught on to us not being sure about ending up with these other versions of our husbands?" Brenda said knowingly.

"Yeah." Tamora nodded. "Believe me I understand, it is hard to move on once you've lost someone you really love. I should know." She looked a little sad before continuing: "But if there's one thing I've learned, it's that you can't let your backstory control your future. After all if I had I wouldn't have married Felix Jr nor had Luann. And I'll always be grateful for having them in my life."

Brenda and Kimberly thought for a moment.

"Well...all right. You do have a point." Brenda decided. "I mean they are exactly like our husbands after all...the only difference is that they're younger. But we don't really look older than them so that shouldn't be a problem."

"True, but we shouldn't end up with them right away." Kimberly pointed out. "Remember they're from around a few years before they meet us, so they're not exactly programmed to love us. First we should wait and see if they'll love us back."

"Good idea." Brenda agreed.

"You probably won't have to worry about that, from what I've seen you both compliment your respective husbands and vice-versa." Tamora smiled. "Which I believe is how you fell in love with the backstory versions."

Brenda and Kimberly nodded, blushing a little. It was true, loving the younger versions of their husbands had nothing to do with the programming. If it had then they wouldn't have fallen in love with the younger versions in the first place. After all they were originally programmed to fall in love with them around a few years after Fix-It-Felix and Cook 'n' Bake, which was long before the Fix-It-Felix Jr timeline.

Now Felix Sr and Raeburn hadn't really fallen in love with Kimberly and Brenda. They had developed some affection for them, but it wasn't love yet. At the moment Felix Sr and Raeburn only thought of Kimberly and Brenda as really great friends. Ralph knew this and was kinda disappointed, he was hoping that both his parents and Felix Jr's parents would get together before Christmas so that all of them could really enjoy the holidays. For the same reason he also was hoping that Felix Jr would soon accept Felix Sr back into his life.

Felix Jr constantly thought of it, but he was too scared to go through with it. What if he lost his dad all over again? His heart just wouldn't be able to take it. He decided to get advice, and knew just where to get it: Bad-Anon. After all the other badguys had been very beneficial to Ralph with their kindness and wisdom, so who's to say it won't work for him as well?

The next Bad-Anon day, after the arcade closed, Felix Jr left early and headed for PacMan. There he ran into some of the bad-guys, namely Dr. Eggman. Ralph wasn't there because he had been spending a lot of his time catching up with Raeburn, which the other badguys knew and understood.

"Felix Jr?" Dr. Eggman said confusedly. "What are you doing...did something happen to Ralph?"

"No...actually I'm the one who needs help." Felix Jr admitted.

"Uh...one moment please." Dr. Eggman entered PacMan; a few minutes later he returned. "Okay, you can come in."

"Thank you." Felix Jr tipped his hat.

He and Dr. Eggman entered the Bad-Anon room.

"Well this is a surprise." Clyde smiled. "No goodguy has ever asked us for help before. At least not as a group anyway."

"I know, but...all of you have been very helpful to Ralph. Your kindness and words of wisdom...and I thought maybe they could help me too." Felix Jr admitted. "Of course you all know about...Felix Sr returning here with Raeburn right?"

The bad-guys were stunned about Felix Jr not calling Felix Sr 'dad'. They instantly got the problem.

"You are having hard time accepting your father back aren't you?" Zangief realized. "But why? He is your father and it's not like he has done anything wrong-"

"No no, it's nothing like that." Felix Jr waved a hand. "And...actually his being my dad...kinda...is the problem. You see...well, the truth is I have a tragic moment in my past, one that's been hard to talk about. But now...well, I think it's time I explained fully:

See in my backstory, as I was growing up, dad and I had been practically best friends. He taught me so much, and not just fixing things either. It's thanks to him that I'm the polite and friendly guy you know today. We had so much fun...but then...when I was fifteen...dad got cancer."

The badguys were shocked and started to catch on to the real problem.

"It was horrible...he got sick really fast...at least to me and mom...and had to go to the hospital." Felix Jr tried hard not to cry. "Then...then it looked as if he was going to pull through. For about a couple days he was almost healthy and mom and I thought he'd be coming home soon. But then...then the next morning we got a phone call. Dad had a relapse and was even worse than ever. Mom and I rushed to the hospital to...to see him one last time. He...he gave me his hammer, said his goodbyes...and died." Felix Jr started to cry but recovered. "Mom and I...we never got over it. I was so depressed for many years...dad not being there when I learned how to drive, and especially when I graduated, just made things worse.

I didn't even start to overcome my depression until Ralph lost his dad in a demolition accident years later. Now that we were both on the same boat we became closer than ever, and Ralph was a great source of comfort for a long time. You see his dad had pre-warned him about the dangers of demolition, so while Raeburn's death had been a horrible shock both Ralph and Brenda at least were prepared for it and were able to get over it.

As time passed I went back to being the cheerful Felix Ralph knew from before dad got sick...but now...now that this younger version of Felix Sr has arrived the pain has returned. I...I'm so scared...I don't want to lose my father again. I mean what if he gets cancer and dies on me and mom again? I wouldn't be able to handle it..."

He started crying, and continued crying until he felt a pressure on his back. Startled, he looked and saw the zombie Cyril's hand on his leg, and got that the pressure he was feeling was Cyril's arm. Felix Jr turned and saw Cyril looking at him sympathetically, which caused him to realize that Cyril was trying to hug him reassuringly. Felix Jr then looked around and saw that all the other badguys were looking at him sympathetically too.

"We all understand, losing someone you love is never easy for anyone." Clyde said. "But there's always a risk when you love someone, especially since anything bad can happen to him. However so many good things come from loving the person, and those good things can outweigh the bad and make the risk worth it."

Felix Jr bit his lip.

"Besides." Cyril said. "If dad get cancer, he get it whether you let him in life or not."

"Cyril has a point." Bowser agreed. "If this other version of your dad gets cancer and dies then you'll end up regretting not letting him into your life."

Felix Jr widened his eyes, realizing that he hadn't thought of that. He also knew that Cyril and Bowser were both right.

"But truthfully I do not think you have anything to worry about." Satine smiled. "Don't you remember? Getting cancer happened to your dad as part of your backstory, not his. It had nothing to do with the original Fix-It-Felix game, and even if it did it didn't happen to him until long after he had you. This Felix Sr is from...well, I believe he's from before he even met your mom."

"He is..." Felix Jr confirmed...and slowly smiled as he realized that Satine was right as well. "You're right...you're all right... I actually don't have anything to worry about...and even if I did I'm not going to let this opportunity to have a second chance with dad slip by me. Thank you all, really. If there's anything I can do-"

"Never mind that." Clyde chuckled. "Just go see your dad."

"I will." Felix Jr grinned and ran out. "Thanks again!"

"You're welcome!" The bad-guys called back.


	8. Letting Go of the Past

Felix Jr continued running until he was back in his game and his dad was in sight. It turns out he had to look almost all over for Felix Sr because he wasn't home, instead he was sitting under a tree kinda near the pond. Felix Jr winced, but then relaxed once he saw that the ducks weren't nearby. Even though Ralph had convinced the ducks to leave him alone outside gameplay their programming still caused them to glare at him a lot.

Felix Jr walked over to his dad.

"Dad?" He said.

Felix Sr did a double-take...and dropped his mouth open. This was the first time Felix Jr had ever called him dad.

"Did...did you just...?" He almost stammered.

"Yeah...I'm so sorry for not accepting you into my life earlier." Felix Jr hung his head. "You see...I had been scared that you would get cancer and die on me and mom. I just couldn't go through that again. However just a few minutes ago I talked to Ralph's badguy friends and they told me that it wasn't going to happen...and even if it did I would regret avoiding my second chance with you. And they're right, I do want you in my life again."

Felix Sr smiled emotionally, and got up to hug his son.

"And I want you in my life too, even if you are from long after I'm supposed to meet your mom." Felix Sr said. "I may not have been programmed to be a dad, but I still love you like a dad would."

"I love you too..." Felix Jr sobbed. "I've missed you so much..."

"There there, you know my backstory version never really left you or your mom." Felix Sr pulled away and smiled comfortingly; he then put a hand over Felix Jr's heart. "He always was in both your hearts, and when someone is in your heart then they're always with you."

Felix Jr smiled, feeling a lot better. True, Ralph had said that to him before years ago but it felt more meaningful coming from Felix Sr. Of course hearing something like that from a healthy friend is one thing...but hearing it from someone who is supposed to be dead is entirely different.

"So, since my backstory version obviously missed out on a lot of things - at least physically, I'm sure he always watched you from heaven - how about you tell me anything you want from your past? Like what the last few years of school was like?" Felix Sr smiled, sitting back down and gesturing for Felix Jr to join him.

"I'd love that." Felix Jr smiled, sitting down next to his father.

What they didn't know however, was that Kimberly was there watching them. She had seen her son return and followed him when she realized that he was looking for Felix Sr. As she listened to Felix Jr and Felix Sr talk she realized that he was more like her backstory husband than she originally thought...he even had the same fatherly instincts. She decided to let him into her life too.

Felix Jr continued to talk to Felix Sr about the years his backstory father had missed out on. When he got to moving to Niceland he shortened it, figuring his dad already knew most of the story. Instead he mostly focused on how he felt about moving there...and eventually got up to the first gameplay. Now the first gameplay was also the first time Ralph's stump had been moved. Ralph caught on right away that it was a game, and so just went along with what his programming told him to do. He did feel bad about hurting his old friend with the bricks, but it was part of the gameplay so he shrugged it off at the time and decided to check on him later. Then the first time a player won Ralph was caught off-guard by the Nicelanders picking him up and tossing him off the roof, which was why he never resisted. He also was relieved to not feel any pain from hitting the mud puddle.

As for Felix Jr's point of view of that first game...

"Then the first gameplay began." Felix Jr continued talking to Felix Sr. "After seeing the screen appear I realized we were in a game now and so just went with what my programming told me to do. It was instinctive really. But what surprised me was seeing Ralph being the cause of the ruined building. I didn't know why he was attacking the Nicelanders or even their home at first, but then I remembered that he had become friends with the animals so I figured he was just avenging them. So I just did my job...I did consider talking to Ralph about it but decided not to since I had to follow the gameplay.

Then...then the first time a player won happened. I was shocked about Ralph being tossed off the building, but hid it for the sake of the game. I then went to Ralph after the arcade closed and checked on him...and it turned out he didn't mind. He had been caught off-guard the first time he was tossed off the roof, but got used to it and even found it a little fun because he could now get dirty as part of his job. Brenda never did like him playing in mud puddles when he was a little boy." Felix Jr chuckled and then hung his head. "He then asked me about the bricks hitting me and I reassured him that it was okay. We both had figured out that what happened to us during a game was part of the gameplay and so we should just go with it." Felix Jr now looked sad and regretful:

"This...this was why I never caught on to Ralph gradually becoming resentful of his role. I had no idea that the Nicelanders actually hated him and looked down on him, I thought they were just scared of him because of their programming. And because of my shy nature I never confronted them about it. When I saw Ralph sleeping in the dump for the first time I had no idea that it was actually his new home...because the Nicelanders had ruined his old home. I thought he was still living with Brenda and only slept in the dump so that he could look at the stars as he went to sleep. He never told me about his stump or living underground...later, after I found out the truth, he explained that he never told me because he knew I wouldn't approve of it. He knew I would offer to build him a house, and he didn't want that because he was happy living outdoors like the other animals yet also found it hard to say no to me. And after I found out about all the suffering he had been going through I felt awful. I should've realized sooner that he wasn't having a happy life at all..." He started to sob a little.

"It's okay son, you never meant any harm and it is obvious that if you had known about Ralph's hard life you would've worked hard at improving it." Felix Sr smiled comfortingly. "No one can solve all the problems in the world either, not even a kind and helpful person like you. It's not your fault, after all Ralph was okay with his role in the beginning and since you always enjoyed your role then you assuming that he always enjoyed his as well makes sense. It was an assumption anyone could make. And remember what you did after you found out the truth? You not only helped Ralph build a new and real home, you also built homes for Q*Bert and his friends too. That more than makes up for being oblivious to Ralph's earlier predicament, which I'm sure he forgave you for right away."

"Yeah...he did...actually he never was mad at me about it anyway." Felix Jr smiled, feeling better. "He knew that I didn't know what his life was really like, and since he's not good at expressing his feelings he found it hard to tell me. Especially since he didn't want to come across as a complainer or something like that. Plus he was grateful to me for still being kind to him even though we had kinda drifted apart a little. That mostly was because of his trying to avoid conflicts and my time being occupied by the Nicelanders always praising and rewarding me though. Deep down in our hearts we were still best friends and brothers...though it did feel awkward to call him that at first when the whole adventure in Sugar Rush started. As I started to really worry about him though I also remembered how much he really did mean to me."

"You see? You really do care about him and that's what matters most." Felix Sr smiled.

"Yeah...you're right." Felix Jr smiled back before hugging him. "Thank you dad."

"Anytime son."

A.N. To clarify: In game characters' backstories they were like us, actual humans who aged, or at least it felt that way to them. It's in all their programmings.

Time passed, and to Felix Sr and Raeburn's surprise they started to realize that they were falling in love with Kimberly and Brenda respectively. They couldn't figure out how at first, until they thought about why they loved them. Felix Sr realized that he loved Kimberly because she was kind, sweet, sincere, and open-minded. Raeburn realized that he loved Brenda because she was kind, devoted to her friends and family, spirited, and determined.

"Uh, Raeburn, I have something to confess." Felix Sr said one afternoon when he and Raeburn were hanging out in Felix Sr's house.

"What is it pal?" Raeburn asked.

"I...I've fallen in love with Kimberly."

"Whaddya know...I've fallen in love with Brenda." Raeburn smiled.

"Really?" Felix Sr was a little surprised. "Huh...what should we do?"

"Dunno, I mean Brenda and Kimberly might still be affected from the deaths of their backstory versions of us." Raeburn shrugged.

"True...say, how about this: we ask them to hang out without it actually being dating." Felix Sr snapped his fingers. "We'll just hang out as friends, and then wait until they're really comfortable being around us before admitting our feelings."

"That's a great idea." Raeburn smiled.

So they left Felix Sr's house and went to look for Kimberly and Brenda. The lights in Kimberly's house were out so they tried Brenda's house: the lights were on. They went up to the front door and Felix Sr knocked. Brenda opened the door.

"Oh, Felix Sr, Raeburn, hello." She smiled.

"Good afternoon Brenda, Raeburn and I were wondering if you and Kimberly wanted to hang out sometime?" Felix Sr asked.

"Yeah, we both think of you two as really great friends and would like to hang out some more." Raeburn added.

"Well I'm fine with that...Kimberly?" Brenda turned her head.

"Uh...sure." Kimberly blushed. "I would love to hang out with you two."

"Great." Raeburn grinned.

"So, what would you two like to do first?" Felix Sr asked.

"Well...how about going out to dinner tonight? Kimberly and I haven't done that in a long time." Brenda suggested. "We could go to Burger Time."

"Sounds good, I've been wanting to try his food." Raeburn nodded. "Ralph already introduced me to the drinks in Tappers and they're delicious so I'm sure Burger Time will be just as good."

So later that night, that's what they did. Felix Jr and Ralph were really happy upon finding out, for they both were hoping that their moms and other-version dads would end up together.

Time passed as Raeburn, Brenda, Felix Sr, and Kimberly continued to hang out. The rest of the families found out and were happy as well. They, especially Vanellope, Reneult, and Luann, were also hoping that Ralph's parents and Felix Jr's parents would end up together.

It was now a few days until Christmas. The arcade was closed, so Vanellope, Candiel, and Reneult were living with Ralph. Tamora and Luann had also decided to live with Felix Jr for the holidays, so both families decided to have a big Christmas Eve dinner together in between Niceland and East Niceland.

Then, during the afternoon of Christmas Eve...

"Brenda...there's been something I've been meaning to tell you." Raeburn said after picking Brenda up at her house.

"What is it Raeburn?" Brenda smiled.

"Well...I know you're probably still hurting from your backstory version of me dying but..." Raeburn hung his head. "I love you. You're so full of spirit and devoted to those you care about that I couldn't help it."

Brenda actually blushed.

"The truth is I fell in love with you earlier this month." She said. "I was just waiting for you to love me back first."

"Really?" Raeburn beamed.

Brenda nodded, grinning.

"I guess no matter what age we both are or what's in our programming we'll always compliment each other enough to love each other." She said.

"I agree with that." Raeburn smiled. "You really do complete me."

He hugged her and she hugged him back.

Around the same time Felix Sr had picked up Kimberly at her house.

"Uh, Felix Sr...before we go I have to tell you something." Kimberly blushed.

"What is it Kim?" Felix Sr asked.

"I...I love you." Kimberly hung her head shyly. "If you don't love me back it's okay, I...I just couldn't keep it a secret any longer."

"But...but I do love you back." Felix Sr smiled. "I was just worried that you would be uncomfortable about us because...because of your backstory version of me."

"I was at first...until I saw our son accept you into his life." Kimberly grinned. "Even though you weren't programmed to be his father...you're still a wonderful father. And seeing that helped me realize that programming doesn't count, it's what's in the heart that matters. And even if you may not have all of my backstory husband's programming...you still have all of his heart."

Felix Sr beamed and gently hugged her. Kimberly hugged him back and then pushed him back a little so that she could kiss him. He froze for a moment at the kiss, and then smiled and returned it. 8-bit hearts surrounded them.

When both new couples made it to dinner everyone else there found out the good news. Obviously they were all very happy, Ralph, Felix Jr, Vanellope, Reneult, and Luann most of all.

The huge family had a wonderful dinner together, and even decided to go to Ralph's house to watch a couple Christmas movies afterward. His house was the largest in Fix-It-Felix Jr so...

After the movies they all decided to go to bed. Raeburn dropped Brenda off at her house...and she gave him a big kiss, one that he was more than happy to return. 8-bit hearts surrounded them. Felix Sr and Kimberly said goodbye pretty much the same way, except Felix Sr gave Kimberly a gentle kiss.

Despite having just fallen in love, both couples discussed getting married. After all in a way they had married previously, and it had been a happy marriage while it lasted. Besides, 8-bit hearts always mean true love amongst game characters.

So, about a couple weeks into January, both couples married at the same time in the church of Fix-It-Felix Jr. Despite their love being true, and despite Brenda and Kimberly having married backstory versions of their husbands with no problems, they still wanted to wait a while. In fact they would still be waiting if Brenda and Raeburn hadn't gotten into a fight. It was a silly matter really, Raeburn was just wondering if he should look into the demolition business again and Brenda argued against it. Raeburn's pride caused him to argue back and it soon turned into a real fight.

But then after the fight Raeburn felt so bad about hurting Brenda that he went over to her and apologized, adding that he loved her too much to stay mad at her. Brenda apologized too, feeling the same way, and also explained that she was just scared of his getting killed again. He understood, and reassured her that he changed his mind. He decided that he wanted to spend more time with her anyway, to make up for the time his backstory self had lost. And that's when they both realized that it was time.

As for Felix Sr and Kimberly, they actually would've married sooner but wasn't sure if it would be proper or not. But when Brenda and Raeburn quickly made up after their fight and decided it was time to marry, Felix Sr and Kimberly decided that it would be okay for them to get married too.

And it was, everyone took it more than well. Especially the rest of both families. And it turns out that Raeburn and Brenda, and Felix Sr and Kimberly, stayed so happy together that you'd think they had been married for years. Raeburn and Brenda never even had another fight ever again.


End file.
